Sofia the First (character)
'''Princess Sofia is the main protagonist of the Disney Junior series Sofia the First. She is voiced by Ariel Winter.' Sofia is a little girl with a commoner's background until her mother marries the King of Enchancia and she suddenly becomes Royalty. Sofia learns that looking like a Princess isn't all that hard, but behaving like one must come from the heart. Background Sofia is a young girl of humble origins who lives with her mother Miranda. (Her biological father is absent for unknown reasons.) She becomes royalty after her mother's remarriage to King Roland II. Being new to the entire princess legacy, Sofia attends the Royal Prep Academy where Flora, Fauna and Merryweather teach her the books about what being a princess is all about. However, Sofia is caught between two messages - is being a princess about the fancy dress or the power of love? It is up to her animals, led by Clover the rabbit, and a powerful amulet, to set her on the path of the heart. Personality Sofia has a pure heart. Since she was originally a mere commoner, she retained a very carefree personality, and was once seen to enjoy sliding down the rails of the staircase. Her outcast-like behavior often puts her at odds with her sister Amber, who was apparently jealous of Sofia due to her social talents. Often times, the firm Hildegarde is a little thrown off by her vivacious personality. She can be quite gullible when around Cedric the Sorcerer. When she was new to the Royal game, she often let Amber tow her around, and had to be brought to her senses by Miranda. Sofia and Amber clash due to Amber loving large events while Sofia prefers quaint things, like the maze of secret gardens. They also, most dramatically, have different views on the value of looks and other material things. Sofia prefers the power of the heart, while Amber is more focused on physical value. This makes them two completely different types of princess and will most likely lead to two completely different paths as they grow. Due to past magical experiences, Sofia is usually very careful and hesitant when using active magic, respecting its power and what it's capable of, whether it's done correctly or incorrectly. Powers and Abilities Although a young girl, Sofia has displayed various skills, abilities, and magical potential. * '''The Amulet of Avalor:' This magical amulet, gifted to her by her stepfather, grants Sofia the power to talk to animals (for which the amulet blessed her when she helped a baby bird back into its nest). Without the amulet, however, Sofia loses the ability to understand her animal friends when her amulet was stolen by a baby griffin. When she brags about her singing at the Harvest Festival, the amulet temporarily ruins her voice, making her have bouts of croaking until she made things right which breaks the curse. When she helps Oona the mermaid out of a fishnet, the amulet blesses her with the ability to transform into a mermaid and gain everything that comes with it including the ability to breathe underwater. The Amulet also gives her the ability to shrink herself at will; she can even shrink what she is wearing to scale. Sofia started off wearing the Amulet merely to keep her promise to her father, though she did think it was lovely at the start. But only after it was briefly stolen by the Baby Griffin did Sofia begin to truly appreciate it. When Amber seeks it, Sofia reveals that it is special. By the time Miss Nettle seeks it, Sofia uses the promise as an excuse for not removing the Amulet and giving it to her, when her true reason is that it has become important to her. * Flying Horseriding: In "Just One of the Princes", Sofia tried out for the Royal Prep Flying Derby team, with Minimus as her steed. After hard work and training, she managed to win her spot on the team, and became a skilled flying horse-rider. She uses those skills later to rescue Clover from Boswell, then to chase Wormwood, the latter event occurring in her regular dress. This begins her fondness for sporting events, such as the Tri-Kingdom Picnic. Sofia has also been revealed to be a good gymnast, adventurer, and mountain-climber. * Magic: In "Cedric's Apprentice", Sofia began lessons in magic and sorcery, first having trouble with a spell to turn things into rubies. But with her temporary sorcery-teacher, Cedric the Sorcerer, she soon masters the ability to cast spells although it requires a wand. This comes in handy later when she frees the headmistresses from their bubble. However, after her first try at spell-casting when she put everyone attending her first ball to sleep, she remains cautious about bold magical attempts, even in measuring magical plant food. However, her skill has greatly increased, allowing her to break a bubble trapping the headmistresses in one try. As Cedric's apprentice, Sofia got to clean Cedric's books, enabling her to know of a few spells, such as one concerning animal-human transformation that came up when she later turned into a cat. In a rare exception of recklessness around magic, Sofia tested Cedric's new Duplication Spell on herself, despite the food-loving Clover advising her to copy the apple she had tried it out on first four or five more times. This recklessness led to the creation of Sofia the Worst. Her magical skills and knowledge have grown to the point where she's the top student in Sorcery Class. * Swordsmanship: In "Baileywick's Day Off", during a game of pirates, Sofia displayed competent skills with a sword (albeit a toy one), to keep her brother James on his toes and even disarm him. Given Royal Prep offers fencing lessons, Sofia probably learned there. Wand work also requires similar arm movements, which could also add to an explanation of her skill. * Various Buttercup Girl Scout Skills: As a Buttercup Scout, Sofia has learned many outdoor skills, such as wood-gathering, identifying various herbs, survival skills, etc. * Leadership: Sofia displayed potential and competency as a leader, when she led her fellow Buttercups in making a sled so they could hurry an ill Baileywick to get treatment at the castle. When Roland was lost in a snowstorm, she ordered the animals of the woods to find him and bring back proof. When rescuing Clover from Boswell, she used strategy with Mia, Robin, Crackle and Minimus, tricking Boswell into choosing her for a magic trick and repeatedly impeding him from holding on to Clover for long until Crackle shook him off for good with a fiery blast. When defeating Miss Nettle with Cedric, she begins to develop her cunning by using Clover's chewing ability with Wormwood's wings to get a spare wand for Cedric when his original wand is damaged, then uses his Morpho Mirrors trick to trap Miss Nettle. When the island she is having a picnic with her mother and siblings is levitated, her quick wit is used again when she tries to pull them down to a neighboring island with her allies and a rope. Sofia, however, often has difficulty seeing other people's viewpoints, but if she knows those views, she uses them well to her advantage. She also, especially with Amber, is good at winning arguments over opinions on how things should be run. Sofia has recently proven to be good at thinking through how to solve difficult tasks, such as finding the answer to an ogre's riddle, then at figuring out how to make a good science project without Hocus Crocus. When James becomes King For The Day, she proves to be a competent Royal Adviser. Sofia, unlike James, easily takes advice and learns well from experience. Her physical prowess improves after taking Roland's advice and running a race course as a cat in "When You Wish Upon a Well". However, when around figures of authority, even her siblings, Sofia can be overpowered. * Sofia's Heart: Many times, Sofia has shown compassion, kindness and resolve, all of which have helped her overcome the challenges that she has faced as a princess, as well as helping others. She never gives up, always finds a way to succeed and the goodness of her heart has helped others in ways that only kindness and patience can. Her heart is her most prized feature, valued by her allies, especially Fauna and Clover. Her corset and tiara, as well as her chest with her possessions that she had as a cobbler's daughter, have heart designs. Her heart, like all gifts, has its downsides - Sofia is sensitive and emotional, overreacting at times. She can also be very selfless when it is unrequired. One of her biggest weaknesses is that though she asks why things are the way they are, she does not want her own world to change. This becomes clear in her feeling left out when Ruby and Jade play with Amber. It links to her being very protective and possessive of people and things she values. Sofia can be flexible, but it is hard to do. Sofia wants to please everyone and make the best impression, making her vulnerable to peer pressure. She dislikes being alone, for when she is alone, her inner vulnerability often surfaces. Despite being claimed as independent, Flora's drawing of her in RPA to help her learn the school motto shows a significantly different outcome for her in the end. Sofia is selflessly willing to help Amber out after she cheats in the RPA Halloween costume contest by using Cedric's magic and needs the Amulet of Avalor to remove her butterfly wings, for instance. Sofia's heart does not blind her cunning, which she uses to guide the cowardly Desmond and discover Amber's sudden desire for the amulet. Despite appearing to be gullible around Cedric, Sofia is very intuitive of trouble when Miss Nettle is around. Sofia's heart has led to her favoring group over individual effort, as shown in her dislike of her friends' competitive behavior in "Enchanted Science Fair". It has also helped her handle dangerous animals with the Amulet by talking to them, as shown in her mediating with Wilbur the Wombeast and the Jade Jaguar. * Intelligence and Patience: While Sofia's greatest assets are the power of her heart and the moral strength that comes with it, Sofia prefers to rely on knowledge and patience. This is because after her first attempt at casting a spell, she came to value the slow and steady approch. Sofia places a lot of faith in books she has read, usually thinks things through, and, contrary to what her family and Admiral Hornpipe believe, she is a hardheaded pragmatist who does not believe that something is so until she knows for sure that it is so and is very practical and realistic. She has a hunger for knowledge that makes her find out stuff that other people, especially Roland, usually overlook, like the fact that the "troll attack" King Gideon supposedly stopped was in fact a huge misunderstanding. This has also given her superb detective skills. However, her cautious approach does have its limits. As shown in the Floating Palace after Oona was kidnapped, when people she cares about are in danger, Sofia instantly throws caution to the winds and begins making decisions she usually refuses to make because she considers them too reckless and irresponsible. * Athletic Prowess: '''Despite initially being clumsy, Sofia has shown that she posseses superb athletic prowess. She was strong enuogh to throw Hugo off his horse and into haystacks, despite the fact Hugo is bigger. She also posses great stamina as shown when she marched through a jungle all the way to the Jade Jaguar's cave, a feat that easily tired out Amber and Jun. Her prowess was heighted when she retained the cat reflexes she gained after Amber accidently turned her into a cat. Her athletic prowess has grown to the point where both the Dunwiddie Ducks and Royal Redhawk's wanted her to be on their team for the King's Cup. * '''Micromanagement and Resourcefulness: '''Like her friend Prince Desmond, Sofia values careful planning and is very resourceful. She is able to plan very far ahead. It is the second reason she has superb detective skills and why she is very cunning and why she is very good at riddles. It has also made her a very fast learner. * '''Decerning Mind and Attention to Detail: Sofia has shown that she's very good at detective work. This is due to her intelligence, resourcefulness, and her having a keen eye for detail. This is shown when she figures out that Amber gave her the trick shoes on purpose and that Tizzy enchanted Ruby's go-carriage so the pedals would move on their own and saw through Amber's and Ruby's lies to the contray and when she figured out Slickwell's plot against Baileywick. It's the second reason Sofia is good at solving riddles. * Quick Thinking and Creativity: Despite being a micromanager, Sofia also values quick thinking and is able to improvise. She is able to come up with plans on the spot. She is also very creative to the point where it was why she made an excellent royal adviser.